Today was supposed to be full of tips and resources for the postpartum period, but I got this amazing email that I wanted to share with y’all instead. We’ll get to tips and resources on Monday.
This Mama was in my HypnoBirthing class. At 36 weeks, her baby hadn’t turned into the head down position and was still breech. She had tried a variety of methods to get the baby to turn: Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Spinning Babies, Visualization. They opted not to do the “Version” (ECV) to try to turn the baby. In Austin, there are no OBGYNs that will do vaginal breech deliveries, so they began to come to terms with having a c section.
Here’s the thing about breech babies: SOMETIMES WE JUST DON’T KNOW WHY THEY WON’T TURN. And that, my friends, is a hard pill to swallow.
Sometimes babies turn very easily. It’s like they just need to be coaxed into position. Sometimes you do everything possible and they STILL remain lodged in the “less than optimal” position. For a mom that had planned on having a non-medicated, all natural, all vaginal birth for the past 9 months, it can be quite traumatic and heart-breaking. And moms, many times, must go through all the various stages of grief in order to work through their feelings about it.
- Denial
- Anger
- Bargaining
- Depression
- Acceptance
When Lacy came to class last week, she and her husband and I sat and talked after class about her upcoming c section. She was nearly 39 weeks at this point, and in the past week or 2 they had processed through a lot of their feelings and come to terms with the ultimate change in plans for their birth.
It’s very important for moms to be allowed to be sad and allowed to express their feelings about this kind of thing. Too many people want to brush their feelings aside with things like
“At least you’ll have a healthy baby”
“There’s always next time”
“Now you don’t have to go through labor!”
The email I received yesterday made me really happy. Not because she sang my praises- ha- but because, through the power of affirmations and changing her mindset through what she learned in Hypnobirthing, she was able to turn her situation around and have a wonderful birthing experience. Enough of my babbling. Read on…
We welcomed Avery on Wednesday, June 4th at 8:01am weighing 7lbs, 8oz and. 20 1/2 inches long via hypnobirth cesarean. Both during all the poking, prodding and slicing as well as the torturous recovery (dad is earning his keep for sure) all the visualizations and affirmations worked! I realized today while listening to the “screamer” giving birth next door that although our plan got flipped on its head, that hypnobirth preps you for embracing the unplan far better than anything else. It’s made me and my recovery plan quote “the poster child for csections.” We wanted a calm relaxed birth for Avery and we got it! Miss Avery and her full head of hair, long curly eyelashes, snuggly nature, smiles, cooing and squealing that only lasts so long is working hard to learn to nurse, sleep in her bassinet, and loves skin on skin contact. Thank you again for all your wonderful support. We had a blast in your class and you definitely have a reference and promoter in the Bartletts!
– Kat G.
WORKOUT
- 3 Rounds:
- 10R/10L KB Clean to Thruster
- 20 KB Swings
- 30 KB Walking lunges